PM 'failed to groom an heir'
July 25, 2001
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, whose political fate
is hanging in a delicate balance, has missed a "golden chance to
act as a statesman" by failing to lay the foundation for the Thai
Rak Thai Party to carry to look after national affairs in his absence,
according to a leading opposition MP.
Speaking at a luncheon meeting held by the American Chamber of Commerce,
Abhisit Vejjajiva, deputy leader of the opposition Democrat Party, said
Thaksin had instead tried to create an impression that neither his party
nor the country could do without him.
Thaksin is awaiting a verdict from the Constitution Court, which is expected
to hand down its ruling in early August on whether the prime minister
deliberately failed to disclose his assets in a filing in 1997. If found
guilty, he will be barred from politics for five years.
Abhisit also accused Thaksin of sending improper signals to the public
by assuring there was a quick fix or an easy way out of the country's
economic problems. This signal was quite damaging, he said, for it suggested
there was no need for painful reform, and that all the public or the business
community needed to do was to wait for government handouts, he suggested.
"The prime minister said he would undertake reform but we have not
had a single signal from him that he would take the tough and unpopular
decisions in the short term, although he is in a unique position to do
so with his political mandate," Abhisit said.
Thaksin, he added, had also become caught up in his own campaign rhetoric,
playing on nationalism and painting the economic picture in terms of black
and white. This was not to mention the prime minister's confusing signals
on the role of exports, foreign investment and the Bank of Thailand, he
said.
By laying on the campaign rhetoric, Thaksin had deprived himself of the
necessary room to exploit these sectors to help the recovery process during
a time of economic downturn, Abhisit said.
Thaksin indeed has sought to establish a new economic model for Thailand,
based on self-reliance and local wisdom. His view envisages a Thailand
prospering on domestic demand. He aims to gradually shift Thailand away
from the traditional export-oriented policy that has dominated Thai economic
policymaking for more than a decade and which has also been partly blamed
for causing the balance-of-payments crisis. For to export, Thailand needs
to import substantially and in the process could stumble at any time depending
on the economic cycle of the major trading partners.
The heart of Thai Rak Thai's economic policy, as a result, is geared
toward rebuilding rural-based community businesses and upgrading the competitiveness
of the small- and medium-scale enterprises.
However, Abhisit said he had no problem with economic self-reliance in
so far as it is implemented within a global context, in which Thailand
plays an integral part.
During a question-and-answer session, Abhisit urged the prime minister
to tell the truth to the public about the economic difficulties ahead
due to a sharp drop in export and economic activity. The PM should undertake
education reform seriously, he said, otherwise Thailand would never be
competitive in the global marketplace.
Abhisit's last recommendation to the government was to stick to political
and public-sector reform so that the country is ready to move ahead once
it has emerged from the crisis.
Thanong Khanthong
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